All Stories by Sid Perkins
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Rock from the impact that formed the moon may linger in Earth’s mantle
When the young Earth and a Mars-sized body collided 4.5 billion years ago, it left behind dense mantle rock that survives to today, a study finds.
- Planetary Science
Here’s another strike against Venus having copious lightning
Past data and the Parker Solar Probe’s new discovery of weird whistler waves overturn the idea that Venus’ hellish atmosphere has a lot of lightning.
- Paleontology
A one-of-a-kind trilobite fossil hints at what and how these creatures ate
The preserved contents suggest the trilobite fed almost continuously and had a gut environment with an alkaline or neutral pH, researchers say.
- Planetary Science
Flashes in Venus’ atmosphere might be meteors, not lightning
With upcoming missions planned for Venus, scientists are eager to figure out the origin of the mysterious flashes.
- Planetary Science
NASA’s DART mission lofted a swarm of boulders into space
Hubble telescope images of the asteroid Dimorphos reveal a halo of 37 dim, newfound objects — most likely boulders shaken loose from the surface.
- Science & Society
Humans exploit about one-third of wild vertebrate species
An analysis of nearly 47,000 vertebrate animal species reveals that using them for food, medicine or the pet trade is helping push some toward extinction.
- Earth
Irrigation may be shifting Earth’s rotational axis
Computer simulations suggest that from 1993 to 2010 irrigation alone could have nudged the North Pole by about 78 centimeters.
- Climate
Why is the North Atlantic breaking heat records?
Record-breaking sea-surface temperatures off the coast of Africa may affect the 2023 hurricane season. What’s fueling the unusual heat is unclear.
- Anthropology
These ancient flutes may have been used to lure falcons
Seven bird-bone flutes unearthed from a site in northern Israel are about 12,000 years old and may have been used as bird calls.
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New discoveries are bringing the world of pterosaurs to life
The latest clues hint at where pterosaurs — the first vertebrates to fly — came from, how they evolved, what they ate and more.
- Climate
The summer of 2021 was the Pacific Northwest’s hottest in a millennium
Tree ring data from the Pacific Northwest reveal that the region’s average summer temperature in 2021 was the highest since at least the year 950.
- Paleontology
Newfound bat skeletons are the oldest on record
The newly identified species Icaronycteris gunnelli lived about 52.5 million years ago in what is now Wyoming and looked a lot like modern bats.
